The invention relates to an apparatus for playing a game known as a flipper game.
A flipper game apparatus comprises a playing area in the form of a generally flat surface which is slightly inclined relative to the horizontal towards one end of the surface at which the player stands. The apparatus has a generally spring-loaded device for introducing balls on to the playing area, at a controllable speed. The balls are thus shot on to the playing area at the end remote from the player, which end is at a higher level than the end towards the player, so that the balls then tend to roll back down the playing area towards the player and thus also towards an outlet which is disposed at the lower end of the playing area. Arranged on the playing area are a number of obstacles of different kinds, which either only guide the ball as it rolls across the playing area, in a given direction, or which may have a resilient reflection effect so as to shoot the ball away in a different direction. When certain obstacles are encountered by the ball in the course of its rolling movement, points are credited to the player's total or subtracted therefrom, and the running total of points held by the player is stored in a total counter. Arranged in the region of the outlet are a pair of pivotally mounted members which are referred to as flippers. The player has buttons which he can press to actuate the flippers which are caused to pivot about their pivot mountings with a fairly violent movement, by way of solenoid coils. In that way the flippers can shoot the ball back on to the playing area, thus preventing it from reaching the outlet. Such an apparatus can only be used by a single player at a time, and competition between players can only take place by comparing the points totals that each player accumulates in a given period of playing on the apparatus.